Egg cells from stem cells can be applied in infertility treatment

Stem cells extracted from human ovaries can be used to generate egg cells to be applied in infertility treatment, said researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital as quoted by media reports Monday.

Lead researcher Dr. Jonathan Tilly said: “The discovery of oocyte precursor cells in adult human ovaries, coupled with the fact that these cells share the same characteristic features of their mouse counterparts that produce fully functional eggs, opens the door for development of unprecedented technologies to overcome infertility in women and perhaps even delay the timing of ovarian failure.”

According to the research team, a rooted belief is that women are born with a complement of egg cells that must last throughout life.

The research was funded largely by the National Institutes of Health in U.S.